Körber Supply Chain

How to put
KPIs at the
center of
your terminal
planning
Introduction

This paper has been written to provide terminal managers

with an introduction to the power of using computer
simulation and Applied Modelling Algorithms (AMA) to
develop the best terminal operating plan.

Terminals are coming under increasing pressure to increase

performance and maximize the potential of its real-estate
to facilitate the movement of cargos in a timely fashion,
create performance differentiation and increase customer
value. To meet this demand terminals have made significant
investments in terminal management systems to address
improvement in operating efficiency, focusing on the
efficient movement of the cargo in the terminal. This paper
shows the value of looking to optimize the total vessel call,
in particularly the value of putting port KPIs at the center of
the vessel schedule to assist port performance in both
operating and planning efficiency.

Terminals are coming

under increasing pressure
to increase performance
and maximize the potential
of its real-estate.
 Contents

Introduction 2

KPIs the measure of success 4

A new way to plan your terminal 5

The value of putting KPIs at the

center of the vessel schedule 7

3 Körber
 KPIs the measure of
success

Ports tend to be measured and compared based KPI Operating Planning

upon their throughput, the amount of commerce Through-put TEUs x x
conducted inbound and outbound of the port. TEUs processed
from quay to
The intention of this paper is not to debate the gate
merits of different KPIs as port comparators but
Vessel Total vessel x x
the importance of putting them at the center of turn- around dwell time
time from port
all planning decisions. It is, however, worth
arrival to port
emphasizing that the ports function is to process departure
cargo, be it a passenger a lump of coal or a Vessel Time from x x
waiting time arrival in port
container the ports reputation is based on its
to mooring at
ability to do this well and reliably. berth

Cargo dwell Time cargo x x

time spends from
To maximize efficiency the port must drive
being
improvements in both operating and planning, a unloaded to
leaving the
recent study showed that of the total port dwell
gate
time 55% of that time was spent transferring cargo.
Crane Number of x x
The remaining 45% of the time represents a Productivity moves per
considerable opportunity to gain untapped hour

benefits through optimization beyond crane moves. Berth Number of x x

Productivity moves per
Only by addressing the vessel turn-around time hour
can you truly start to address performance. Truck Time spent by x x
turn- around a truck in port
time

Berth Berth x x
Occupancy utilization

% Vessel turn-around time

Cargo transfer time

Vessel arrival to time of

mooring

Time of mooring to time

of first transfer

Last transfer to time of

departure

4 Körber
 A new way to plan your
terminal
In our research, covering over 75 ports and
terminals around the world, it has been quite a “what gets planned, gets managed”
revelation to find that despite the importance of
the vessel schedule, ports are either poorly
served by technology or have been slow in (AMA). Today, with the advent of AMA, the old
adopting technology to construct, organize and adage “what gets measured gets managed” can
plan the vessel calls. Manual systems dominated finally be re-written as “what gets planned, gets
our research, namely the white board with managed”. This is because KPIs can become
spreadsheets being the nearest to a technology active in the planning process rather than being
solution most ports get. Some ports operate on a post planning activity. That is to say no longer
a “first come first served” basis, they do not do you need to take an action and then measure
attempt to plan the vessel, and focus on crane its success, rather the action itself is controlled
utilization, processing quay to gate, and see the by the KPI so the outcome is predetermined.
vessel queue as an aid to ensuring cranes are
well feed with cargo and therefore utilized.
However, getting stuck behind an 18,000 TEU
container ship may not be appreciated by other
port customers! A recent report published by
PWC #1 (Final Report, study aimed at supporting
an impact assessment on the “Measures to
enhance the efficiency and quality of port services
in the EU”) showed port customers wanting
the:the overriding priority is to produce product
and make profits:

“Ability to reserve berthing windows so

that scheduled services are not disrupted
by unforeseen delays waiting for a berth”

The reasons for this lack of investment in scheduling

tools may be varied, one concern that we do
know exists however, is that a “person” needs to
be in control and not a computer. In fact the two
are not mutually exclusive, the vessel planner can
still have the final word, but their decisions can
be supported by a planning application, and dare
I say, improved by Applied Modeling Algorithms

5 Körber
 Applied Modelling Algorithms are intelligent
applications designed to optimize vessels and
model the potential outcomes. They can be
configured to take the KPIs into account when
evaluating the best possible schedule. The act of
scheduling actually needs to take into consideration
a considerable number of parameters, for
example:
• Operating hours permitting; the terminal may
be limited to daylight working hours, the
terminal may be in tidal waters. So vessel
movements will need to be controlled in
accordance with these safe operating conditions
and shift working patterns.
An intelligent scheduling application that supports
the decision making process is also an essential
tool to help maintain an optimized working plan.
In a port, there are many criteria that can
significantly disrupt the schedule, the main
factor often being bad weather. This disruption
impacts ETAs, requiring the plan to be changed
accordingly. The considerable time needed to
plan manually and efficiently leads to plans very
quickly becoming sub-optimal. As a decision support
tool, AMA is capable of fitting late vessels into the
plan to minimize impact on all the other vessels
and if other vessels are impacted this can be
highlighted and the decision taken by the scheduler,
thus continually maintaining optimization.

• Traffic & H&S permitting; health and safety

rules may limit the movement of some cargo
of vessel types while other vessels are transiting
to and from the port.

• Tugs and pilots availability; the vessel may

require assistance to move to and from the
quay, so tugs and pilots resource needs to be
available.

• Berth availability; there must be free berth or

quay space available for the vessel to berth
and safe working distances achieved between
neighboring vessels.

• Cranes, pipelines and equipment resource; the

berth location or quay position must have
available appropriate equipment for the
movement of the vessel cargo.

• Inventory and space availability; cargo to be

loaded must be available at the berth and KPIs need to be achieved collectively and
conversely inventory storage capacity needs- consistently in order to achieve customer
to be available for the unloaded cargo. satisfaction. PWC #1 report highlights customers
desire for consistency of service, rather than
These factors all add a level of complexity to the excellent headline statistics which are not always
decision-making, and each is linked to the port’s achieved.
KPIs. The management of these interrelationships,
and optimizing all of them, is therefore central to
achieving good KPIs and ultimately customer
satisfaction. So having a tool that can make
scheduling suggestions based on your predefined
criteria is a great asset and still enables the
scheduler the option of overriding the decision.

6 Körber
 The value of putting KPIs at
the center of the vessel
schedule

• Ensures you are taking KPIs into consideration

for every vessel call and therefore increase
the chances of hitting them

• Balance movement and flow rates from vessel

to quay to yard to gate

• Maintaining assigned windows increases

customer service

• Increases port efficiency, making use of

existing assets to the full

• Flexibility manage schedule disruption, meet

customers’ needs and switch resources to
accommodate more urgent jobs

• Give the port a competitive edge, improved

quality and service experience

7 Körber
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